


Hearts Beat Defiant

by Balenae



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: ALL THE POKEMON NICKNAMES, Age Difference, Alder is my favorite Champion, Dirty Talk, Established Alder/Cheren, Explicit Sex Later On, Kabu being into Raihan's long long legs, M/M, Mutual Pining, Older Man/Younger Man, Self-Indulgent, a thin excuse to play with worldbuilding in the pokemon universe, but with dudes in love and shit, but you can probably expect, my favorite, sorry leon, tags for that to come, versatile lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:35:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22204960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Balenae/pseuds/Balenae
Summary: Raihan is utterly convinced that Kabu isn't giving his all in the Champion Cups for the Galarian League, but it'll take an old friend from Kabu's early years and a very special gift to help shed light on why.Because there is no way that Raihan will let him hide for long.--"Raihan had been a fan of Kabu’s since he was a little boy. He could still recall the match where the elder trainer nearly took the Championship himself, when he’d first earned the moniker as the Ever-Burning Man of Fire. He could remember what a powerful force of fire Kabu had been.Raihan was nearly positive Kabu was under-performing on purpose and it wasdriving him crazy."
Relationships: Adeku | Alder/Cheren, Kabu/Kibana | Raihan
Comments: 27
Kudos: 191





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Lord, like two people are gonna read this thing, no one but me likes Alder OH WELL. I thought there were some interesting parallels and divergent ideas between he and Kabu, both struggling after strength and failing in different ways. They've also got the only two Bug/Fire Pokemon as their signature critters. 
> 
> I wanted to have a bit more of this written before I started posting but with the Nintendo Direct yesterday revealing that one of the Keystone Pokemon for the fic will be added to SwSh I figured I'd better start throwing this at the wall before it gets REALLY AU. 
> 
> This is legit a thinly veiled excuse to play around with the rules of the world. Seriously.

Leon’s catchphrase of ‘having a champion time’ justifiably died out immediately after he was dethroned in what was possibly one of the most stunning matches Raihan had ever seen. What hung around _after_ , and far more importantly, was the legacy he’d nurtured of strong Galarian trainers. Raihan had always been close to the eye of that particular hurricane, struggling as his rival for most of their professional careers. 

Working to actively compete against the champion may have made Raihan a fearsome force to be reckoned with, and could probably be considered coincidence, but Leon’s legacy of inspiring others shone through truly in how strong _all_ the Galarian Gym Leaders actually were. 

They all had their missions and their usual teams to adequately test challengers, but every single one of them could field team that in any other region might’ve made them champion-strength. 

Milo’s Appletun was often seen chasing after wooloo in the fields with her trainer and usually sat out Gym Battles, but on the pitch she became a defensive wall that was a nightmare to crack. In Hullbury Nessa could sometimes be found flanked by her two fearsome Dreadnaw—only one capable of gigantimaxing, and it had fathered the younger of the two that was the bane of challengers. Allister’s Gengar was a literal terror that would do anything for its trainer, and it had very nearly swallowed rival gigantimax Pokémon when going all-out. Bea’s Machamp had trained with her most of her career and had control of its strength so precise it could pull its punches in Gym matches but was _unleashed_ in the Champion Cup.

Bede and Marnie were both new to leading Gyms, but took to it like arrokuda to water. The former confounding opponents with a wide range of typed attacks, and the latter easily adopting her brother’s anti-dynamax style and making it a Spikemuth specialty, her Morpeko running literal and figurative circles around opponents. 

Melony’s Lapras could brute force entire teams with its almost entirely offensive moveset, and Gordie’s Coalossal could easily turn a disadvantage on its head, steam issuing from its body like an engine, terrifyingly fast when someone tried to expose its extreme weakness to water.

The only exception to this was Kabu of the Motostoke Gym. He put up a strong fight no matter the format, but what was a terrifying, fiery assault for some of the less dedicated trainers of the gym challenge, was a less intimidating opponent in the champion cup. 

Every gym season, without fail, Kabu would send a full half the prospective challengers home with their tail between their legs, and then in the champion cup, put up a good fight but fall out at the first bracket. 

Raihan had been a fan of Kabu’s since he was a little boy. He could still recall the match where the elder trainer nearly took the Championship himself, when he’d first earned the moniker as the Ever-Burning Man of Fire. He could remember what a powerful force of fire Kabu had been. 

Raihan was nearly positive Kabu was underperforming on purpose and it was _driving him crazy_.

“And the worst part is I _know_ he knows I’ve got him figured out!” Raihan raged to Leon as they hiked through a secluded part of the Wild Area. “But he won’t even acknowledge it! Or even battle me properly! It’s infuriating!”

“I think this might be the worst thing about getting dethroned,” Leon said mildly. “Before at least you also talked about beating me, now it’s just your weird boner for Mr. Kabu.”

“Psh,” Raihan elbowed him, “That’s not even remotely true. I also talk about dragons and weather.”

“But mostly about your fixation,” Leon sniped back, but the joke fizzled out, the former Champ fiddling with the straps on his backpack in a rare show of nerves. He chewed his lip and asked _again_ , “You really think they all won’t mind?”

Raihan rolled his eyes. Losing for the first time—and every time—against Victor had done some great things to level Leon out and added a note of maturity he’d been lacking. But some of it was annoying. Leon had never before had cause to doubt himself. “Just because you’re not the Champion any more doesn’t mean you’re suddenly not allowed to be friends with everyone. Besides, you run the Battle Tower, that’s pretty much the same as being a Gym Leader. And even if it wasn’t, I know for a fact Piers is gonna be there with Marnie, and Opal will be there with Bede. And if she’s not walking that boy on a leash I will be _shocked_. Now shut up about it.”

Hop wasn’t going to be in attendance today, though he’d been invited, and was off having some bonding time with some new Pokémon both Leon and Victor had been tight-lipped about while on assignment from Sonia. Raihan wasn’t too concerned what Leon’s little clone was up to, either way. 

Leon snorted and grinned a bit, assuaged, hopefully for the last time, before they arrived. “Thanks, Raihan. Also, that last part? Gross.”

Raihan elbowed his rival, “Not in a weird way, you freak. I mean like he’s literally her pet. Bede is basically her Pokémon.”

This had Leon laughing properly—which was the goal. “That’s sick in its own way, mate.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Raihan waved him off. “I think Victor will be there though.”

“Really?” Oddly enough Leon perked right up at that; he could never seem to defeat Victor even though they’d fought numerous times off the official pitch since the Championship, but he always seized the chance to try. It was super weird for Raihan, like looking into a mirror of how he’d orbited Leon’s reign. 

Leon pointed wordlessly to a large rock nestled against the base of a tree ahead, a faded , messy pokéball painted in white. Destination just ahead.

In a quiet corner of the wild area, far off the beaten path, was a permanent fire pit and campsite. Most trainers and rangers never stumbled upon it, but the Gym Leaders and the Champion all met up out there once a Gym Season was complete, away from their busy lives and prying fans. It was good for them to meet and talk regularly, figuring out if they needed to update their Gym Missions, discuss success and failure rates, and really just connect as people and friends and rivals outside all the League rules and regulations.

Raihan heard voices before they cleared the tree line and when they stepped into the clearing there were already a few tents set up, Pokémon were already free of their balls and running around and playing, and several Gym Leaders were making a valiant attempt at installing a truly massive cooking pot over the fire pit. 

“Gordie, dear, it’s crooked,” Melony was saying to her son—their differences always set aside for these few days—clearly having appointed herself as overseer while the Grass, Rock, and Fighting type Gym leaders struggled to hold the big pot steady. Bede and Victor were doing their best to hook and latch it into place. The Fairy-Type gym leader let a steady stream of griping loose on Victor as they worked—the latter taking the piss by making mocking faces behind Bede’s back to Marnie, who watched, laughing behind her hand. He spied Opal sitting back and watching from a chair, sipping tea that was almost certainly spiked with something.

“Well look what the Perrserker dragged in,” Piers said, spotting Raihan and Leon before any of the others that engaged with the huge cooking pot.

Raihan spread his arms as if to gesture to the area, “What gives? Doesn’t even look like we’re the last to arrive.” 

“Doesn’t mean you aren’t slower than a Pelipper in a sandstorm,” Gordie said, flashing them a grin, and wincing when Bea snapped at him to hold to cooking pot still. “Are you almost done?” He pleaded with Victor and Bede. 

“Almost,” Victor agreed easily.

“We’ll be done when we’re done,” Bede grumbled, both of them ratcheting the bolts in place to keep it secure. 

The Champion waved brightly to them with a free hand, “Hi Raihan! Leon,” His grin turned a bit shy, the kid—young man now, Raihan amended favorably in his thoughts, no way after everything Victor had accomplished he should be called a kid—always seemed to get bashful around Leon, even now that he’d claimed victory over the League. “Morag’s been practically plucking her feathers to see Skyline and Charizard again.” He jerked his head over to a section of the camp where a large female Corviknight was looking on eagerly from the rock she’d roosted on, head bobbing a little in excitement.

It wasn’t unusual for the Pokémon of trainers that battled often to make friends like their human partners did, and Victor’s Pokémon were as easy to like as he was. With a single, intensely notable exception; Raihan kept the thought to himself as he spied five regular pokéballs on the young Champion’s belt and one single ultra ball. Victor preferred the classic pokéballs to any of the stronger balls with better catch ratings, notoriously trashing through whole supplies of the things to land a particularly difficult Pokémon. 

The single exception had been the night he and Hop had squared off against Eternatus in the Tower. Raihan had never seen the Dark Dynamax Pokémon himself, but its presence was always there, notable by that single, different pokéball Victor carried. Terrifying to think it had been below Hammerlocke all that time. It still gave him nightmares. 

“Chariz—ah, Vindaloo’s missed her as well,” Leon said, throwing a pokéball out. His partner was rarely in her ball, but she was just as distractible as Leon himself was and it was easier to travel through the sprawling wild area without a wayward fire Pokémon to keep in check. The Nickname was new. Raihan couldn’t remember when Leon had ever nicknamed his Pokémon before, focused solely on battling and strength and that flawless League record. But he was trying new things, and so his faithful partner earned a nickname. Not a very creative one and it was likely all his partners were all named after food, but hey, he got points for trying in Raihan’s book.

Raihan likewise called out his Duraludon, nicknamed ‘Skyline’ on account of the Gigantimax form, to join them. Their Pokémon raced past the others—he _just_ noticed Marnie’s Grimmsnarl and Bede’s Hatterene were braiding each other’s hair—and greeted each other with happy cries and playful tussling. 

He called out his Flygon and Torkoal too—nicknamed Opera and Lignite respectively—the former scampering around him before zooming off to steal one of Bea’s Falinks from formation and send the whole squad into disarray, and the latter poking out of his shell and looking around hopefully. Raihan’s Torkoal had been bred from Kabu’s own, originally from Hoenn—a gift from one professional to another when Raihan had been inducted as Hammerlocke’s League representative, the proudest moment from his proudest memory—and it was always cute to see parent and offspring unite. But it looked like Kabu was one of the Leaders that hadn’t arrived yet—Nessa and Alistair weren’t here either—and bit down his own disappointment. He wondered which of them had volunteered to pick up the Ghost-Type Gym leader from school. 

“Got it!” Gordie crowed happily and the group cheered as the curry pot stood free by itself. 

“Sooo glad we missed that chore,” Raihan teased, pulling out his shiny rotom phone to snap pictures of them and their success with the huge curry vat. 

“Oh just you wait,” Milo fired back, grinning brightly in spite of himself, “You’ll just have to be on duty to tend the fire.”

Raihan blinked a bit, frowning, “Isn’t that usually Kabu’s job? The old man babies that campfire.”

“Oh, didn’t you see the group chat?” Melony said. “He cancelled last minute, didn’t say why.”

Raihan blinked, “Wait, _what_? The old man cancelled?” He snatched rotom out of the air, ignoring its indignant squawk and scrolled through until he found their group chat, glaring down at the message he’d missed from Kabu, apologizing and alerting them of his sudden absence. “Why the heck didn’t you tell me!” He growled at Rotom. 

“You were busy talkin’ and walkin’!” The little possessed device protested. “Seemed rude to interrupt.”

“For the thousandth time,” Raihan said slowly, “You have only two jobs. And they are to take pictures and tell me when anything happens. You are letting me down!”

“Jeez, yikes,” Rotom said. “Whatever you say, boss.” And it flew back into his pocket. 

Raihan stuffed his hands into the front pockets on his hoodie, stewing and frustrated, grinding his teeth and ignoring knowing glance Leon was throwing his way or the quiet snickering laughter that filled the grove. 

“You mean I just got here and we’re already laughing at Raihan? It must be a good day.”

The dragon-tamer looked over where Nessa was approaching with Allister in tow and stuck his tongue out at her.

“Raihan missed that our favorite Fire-Type trainer was gonna be taking a leave of absence,” Piers told them, distractedly slapping the large claws of his Obstagoon Marcy as she tried to steal a few of the berries destined for curry.

“Oh so it’s another ‘Raihan is sad about Kabu’ mood?” Nessa said, tossing out both her Dreadnaw. Raihan nearly missed Alister’s Gengar slipping out of his shadow and into the shadows of the grove around them. Thank Arceus that thing was well-socialized. 

“Same as any other day, then,” Bea said seriously, straight-faced as ever. 

Raihan slouched further, “You all are the worst.”

“I’m rooting for you, dear!” Opal called to him, lifting her teacup in salute, clearly well on her way past tipsy. Retirement was strongly agreeing with her. “More young things need to get themselves a nice aged piece of meat, and Kabu is—”

“Oh _no,_ ” Bede hid his face in his hands. 

“Oh he’s a little young for me, but you should definitely get a good double handful of that,” Opal winked at him salaciously and Bede made a faint sound like he might really be dying. 

“Bede, you’re a braver person than I, taking over Ballonlea’s gym” Marnie said, slapping his shoulder, making him stumble.

Conversation turned to teasing Bede after that, but Raihan still found he was in a sour mood as the afternoon wore late. The other trainers mingled and talked around him, and he caught snippets of shop talk and training discussion, sharing the strange and funny things their Pokémon got up to, or meme-worthy meowth or purrloin videos, and just generally getting to be people outside their incredibly demanding jobs and local celebrity status. 

Normally Raihan loved it. He definitely loved high-stakes, high-visibility battling, and loved his fans and the notoriety and infamy. But it was the moments like this when they, as peers, could shed some of that pressure and be friends that rejuvenated all of them enough to keep performing and battling on the level that Galar not only expected, but demanded. 

Today he couldn’t seem to care. He felt weirdly cheated that Kabu had dipped without much notice, and sat off near his tent, idly scrolling through his feed. Even that was unfulfilling as it seemed there wasn’t much in the way of news in anyone’s life. And most of the people he genuinely cared about were in this campsite already. 

His hand idly scratched Opera’s neck, her head pillowed in his lap as she snoozed in the warm evening. He always brought the Flygon because Kabu was usually tickled to see her, the Galarian Flygon very similar to the Hoenn subspecies he was more familiar with. 

Leon flopped down next to him gracelessly, sloshing the mug of tea he had that was mostly moomoo milk. “Still sulking?”

“Piss off,” Raihan grouched, shoving the phone in his pocket and ignoring Rotom’s disgruntled muttering. 

The former champ laughed at him, “You’re ridiculous.” Then, honestly, “You’re really that unhappy that he isn’t here?”

The Dragon tamer shrugged a bit, self-conscious suddenly. “I guess so. I’m in Motostoke only rarely, and never get to see him outside these little meet-ups and work.”

Leon hummed quietly, “Why though? I mean, sure, Mr. Kabu’s a good man and a strong trainer, but you’re _fixated_ like a growlithe with a bone.”

Raihan scratched a spot right behind his Flygon’s antennae that made her leg twitch like a bunnelby. “I mean besides this weird crush, the old man has probably forgotten more about Fire-type Pokémon than I’ll ever know. He’s smart, he’s resourceful, he makes me _think_ , Leon, and he never treats me with any kind of expectation. When do any of us _ever_ get that, even from each other?”

Leon hissed as if in pain, “Raihan, mate, you’ve got it bad.”

The dragon-tamer slouched, sighing, “Yeah, believe me, I know. Ain’t news.”

The former champ bumped shoulders in solidarity and lurched back to his feet. “We’re making the curry here in a minute, but after that you should get on and go if you’re that bent outta shape.”

Raihan blinked, “Go?”

“Well yeah,” Leon pointed off in the general direction of Motostoke. “City isn’t that far. Maybe an hour on foot if you hustle.”

“Are you suggesting I leave here early to try and drop in unannounced on Kabu—who has almost no social life—when something important enough that he had to cancel happened? Is that _actually_ your advice to me right now?”

Leon grinned at him, “I mean, yeah? Why not? Worst he can be is too busy to see ya, and if nothing else you can play it off as polite checking up on him.”

“Right,” Raihan agreed, deadpan, “Because I’m so known for my manners and polite social gestures.”

Leon shrugged, “Do or don’t, mate, but don’t sit around and be a stick in the mud about it.” He headed back over to the group, who’d all started picking out the berries they wanted to add to the cooking pot.

Raihan sighed; it was good advice and Leon was right. He shouldn’t be a moody arsehole to everyone else, that was hardly fair. He snagged the bag of berries he’d brought himself and went to join them and make his own contribution. 

Making the curry they and their Pokémon would all eat was the culmination of the days they’d spend these camping trips, and they’d fight over the main ingredient to add and put in berries either to play to their own tastes, or to soften the tastes of others. It added a note of strategy and cunning to it that some of them loved and some bemoaned. 

Raihan smiled a bit, adding his figy berries to the pile. He and Kabu had both starting added spicy sweet berries to play to their own flavor preferences. He wondered how it would come out this time without him. 

He looked north again, thinking he could almost see the outer walls of Motostoke through the haze of the afternoon. 

Once the curry was finished—Raihan and Gordie both trying to fan the flames harder than the other, nearly burning the hell out of both themselves and the food—all trainers and Pokémon got a serving, and they all relaxed around the fire, eating and talking, waiting for the sun to set and the stars to come out. 

You couldn’t see them in any of the major cities in Galar because of the stadiums, the light pollution too intense, even in quiet burgs like Turffield. 

Last year he remembered lying on the grass next to Kabu, both of them full of food, soft and quiet in the peace of a warm night in the Wild Area. The Fire-type trainer pointing out constellations he’d learned as a boy in rural Hoenn. 

He looked off in the direction of Motostoke again and shoveled the last of the spicy curry into his mouth. It was good, but he liked the combination of sweet and spicy flavors more than just the one on its own. 

Leon was right. Decision made.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raihan arrives in Motostoke in search of Kabu.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to post before the weekend, but MHW: Iceborne came out about two weeks ago and look, that's all I'm going to do until I die probably, and it'll be a happy life.

Raihan arrived in Motostoke before the sun fully set, casting the old brick-and-mortar city into beautiful shades of orange and gold. He’d made good time across the Wild Area, but now that he was in town he wasn’t sure what to actually _do._

He’d never been to Kabu’s home, and had no idea where he lived to try and check up on him there. Raihan doubted he’d be in the gym if something had happened enough to make him cancel, and it occurred to the Dragon-Tamer as well that the Motostoke Gym Leader might not actually _be in Motostoke_ right now, if whatever emergency had called him away. 

He slouched as he walked down the street, sulking, ignoring people staring at him. 

He had Kabu’s phone number, and calling or messaging him was an option, but Raihan had a strong feeling if he did that then he’d be politely dismissed outright. It was probably the way things were destined to end for him even if they did meet, but damn he at least wanted it to be face-to-face.

He could either go back to the camp and give up—fat chance—or start with what he did know, which was the Gym. Maybe one of the staff there would know what he was doing on short notice. 

He took the lift up to the second level of the city and grinned as he saw the crown of old smokestacks the Motostoke Gym bore. The city of Hammerlocke itself was a spectacle, with the huge free-flying buttresses that looked so like dragon’s wings, but the Gym here in this town was what to look for. Even if you weren’t in the stadium to watch Kabu put on a show, you could tell how fierce a fight was happening by the stacks. 

When a challenge was on the pitch and Kabu was fighting, the extra smoke from all the fire type attacks would be vented out the flues. When there was a _real_ struggle happening, Kabu going hard, he’d heard people say they’d actually spit fire. 

Raihan grinned. Like the gym was one of the fabled fire-breathing dragons too. 

Fire-types and Dragon-types had been better sorted out by science these days, but the myths linking them intrinsically remained. 

He knew as soon as he stepped inside the gym though he was shit outta luck. From the looks of things just a skeleton crew of off-season support staff were working, and it seemed as though the pitch itself was being refinished and saw a few techs gutting part of the rotomi broadcast infrastructure. 

“Hey!” He called to one of the staff, trotting over.

She jumped, eyes getting huge as she recognized him, “Mr. Raihan! What are you doing here?”

“Was looking for Kabu, but I guess he isn’t in?”

She shook her head, expression apologetic. “No, I’m afraid not. He always takes some time off right after the conclusion of a challenge season, while the gym undergoes maintenance he doesn’t need to oversee. He wasn’t supposed to be in for another few weeks.”

Shit, that’s right. Raihan had forgotten Kabu always took time off for personal training right after a Championship, and baked into that vacation time was the several days of group camping all the Leaders did. “Do you happen to know where he lives?”

She shook her head, “No, I’m afraid not. Mr. Kabu is pretty private about his life outside work. One of the managers might?” Her doubtful expression spoke volumes though. 

Deflating a bit, Raihan shook his head, “No, never mind. Thanks anyway.”

He took a picture with her when she asked, and gave her one of his common league cards, and headed back out onto Motostoke’s streets. He really didn’t know what he should do next, and paused on the street, shuffling a bit, undecided. He didn’t want to return in failure, but what else could he even try? Time to cave and go for the phone?

He was so focused it took Rotom buzzing in his pocket to snap him out of it, and the phone flew out, the Pokémon’s face frowning on screen. “So, boss, I know you said you wanted me to alert you to stuff better, and I’m gonna try, really. So I figured you should know that the guy you’re lookin’ for? He’s by the train station.” 

Raihan blinked, “Now how do you know _that_?”

“Oh, I bypassed the notification system and sent a message straight to the rotom in his phone and asked where they were,” it tilted back and forth in the air as if shrugging. “Just a little trick. We’re uh, not supposed to do that.”

Raihan grinned with teeth, “You’re amazing, and I take back everything I said.” He snatched it out of the air and hurried forward.

The bridge over toward the Motostoke station was long and full of people enjoying the evening, and Raihan darted and dashed between them, hurrying down the line.

Then, sure enough there at the end of the street by the train station, waiting around like anyone else for the train, was Kabu. The Motostoke gym leader appeared to be picking-up instead of departing, not moving in for the platform, and was dressed in civilian clothing, checking a watch that nestled up to the ever-present Dynamax band on his wrist.

He hated to admit that there was truth to the teasing, but even just the sight of the older gym leader _did things_ to Raihan. His heart kicked up like a Rillaboom Drum Beating, his stomach fluttered like Butterfree, and, yes, sometimes if his thoughts ran away from him his cock did its best impression of a Metapod. It was intensely inconvenient to be so hung up on a co-competitor. And yet…

He hadn’t told this to anyone but Leon, because it was _embarrassing_ , but he’d nearly idolized the foreign trainer in his youth, had watched the recordings of his matches, had posters of him in his room— _Arceus_ the first pulls he’d ever taken furtively in the shower till he burst—it had all been Kabu in the earliest days he’d been a trainer. His crush had been astronomical. 

Years later and his tastes hadn’t changed much. Kabu looked unfairly attractive in his red polo shirt—distractingly tight across his broad chest and shoulders— under a sharply tailored gray blazer, and perfectly pressed gray slacks and loafers. His ultra balls were attached to an understated belt. He looked amazing, casual and dapper and effortless, and Raihan wanted to _eat him_.

“Hey, Kabu!” He called out, waving to be visible—not that he’d have needed it, at over 200 centimeters tall—and took pleasure in the way Kabu visibly startled, black eyes finding him towering in the crowd. 

“Raihan?” He blinked as the dragon tamer trotted over, “What are you doing here? Wasn’t today the start of the camping trip?”

“What, you’re not happy to see me, old man?” Raihan asked, quietly reveling in the usual eye roll it earned him, reliable as clockwork.

“Hardly the point,” Kabu said, frowning a bit as his surprise wore off, crossing his arms, which just made them look firmer under his jacket and _nope don’t look away from Kabu’s face_. “I’d have thought you’d be with the others. Or, are you heading out there now, and arriving late?”

Raihan shrugged a bit, “Left early and came to find you. Didn’t seem right to be missing our fiery representative.”

Kabu scoffed, “Oh, so they’d rather be missing us both?”

Yes, Raihan didn’t say, because all I was doing was being pathetic about you being gone. 

What he did say was “Eh, figured I’d spread my charm around.”

“Ah,” Kabu said with a straight face, but utterly playing along like Raihan _loved_ , “Consider me charmed then.”

“You takin’ a trip?” Raihan nodded toward the train. He was so proud he’d lasted this long before asking. 

Kabu shook his head and checked his watch again, “Waiting on an arrival, actually. An old friend of mine sent word he was visiting short notice, and it’s his first time in the Galar region, so I thought I’d clear my schedule and meet him when he arrives. His plane landed in Wyndon earlier—of course couldn’t be bothered to tell me he was coming before that—but he wanted to try the train and meet me in Motostoke.”

Raihan blinked a bit, “Wait, a friend from Hoenn?” While it was certainly no secret that Kabu was born in the distant Hoenn region, the dragon-tamer couldn’t remember a single instance the older man had ever mentioned anything specific about his life there. “Ho shit, please tell me it’s someone who might have pictures of you as a kid.”

He was joking, but he was also really _not_.

Kabu snorted and shook his head, “You’re a professional, mind your language.” The reprimand came so easily and absently it was practically a fond endearment. Or so Raihan let himself believe. “And no, not Hoenn. Unova, actually.”

“Unova? When were you in _Unova_?”

Kabu cast him a side glance, “Galar wasn’t the first region I visited in my training. After I was invited here by the League it just ended up being the _last._ ”

Anything Raihan might’ve said to that little revelation was forestalled as the train whistle blew, and he could just barely see the blur of cars as it pulled onto the platform. 

“Ah,” Kabu seemed pleased, “Right on time.”

“Want me to get out of your hair?” Raihan offered, wanting anything but, and also knowing it was sort of a dick move to crash into a reunion uninvited. 

Kabu opened his mouth, closed it, and then said hesitantly, “Actually, you’re welcome to stay, if you like.” His hands slipped into his pockets, looking remarkably self-conscious for a moment, or at least the illusion of insecurity. “I think you’d probably enjoy the chance to meet this guest of mine,” A faint ember flicker of a smile passed over his thin lips, something about this amusing him.

Raihan just wasn’t about to look a gift Rapidash in the mouth, “Sure, I’d love to.”

A faint commotion from the tracks pulled their attention outward and Kabu sighed, “Well, that didn’t take long.”

“What didn’t?” 

“For Alder to make a scene,” Kabu said mildly.

“Alder?” 

_“Kabu!”_ A booming voice called out and the usual crowd of travelers and commuters parted for a huge man to move through. He had a shock of hair as fiery as a Turtonator’s shell, and a poncho swirling around him as he moved with great, sweeping strides. A high, black collar bracketed a square face, and Raihan counted _nine_ pokeballs on his person, a League-standard six hanging around his shoulders, and a further three hidden along his belt. His white pants had frayed and worn at the hems and his black sandals were scuffed with wear. 

It took two seconds for Raihan to identify him, which was entirely two seconds too long. 

“Oh _fuck_ ,” He hissed under his breath, “Fucking _Alder_.”

“Language,” Kabu corrected gently again, and smiled—an honest-to-Arceus full smile, what the fuck—at the _former fucking Champion of the Unova region_. “As subtle as you ever are.”

Alder laughed loudly, and people were staring; Raihan should be well used to it by now, but somehow he felt like little more than an onlooker himself. “And you seem to be about as uptight as I remember,” One of his large hands slapped Kabu on the shoulder in a friendly gesture. The force of it would’ve probably had Raihan staggering but Kabu didn’t even budge. “It’s good to see you again!”

“Much better than trying to call with your terrible Unovan reception,” Kabu agreed, arms crossing over his chest.

“I can’t argue with that, but not all of us have Rotomi networks.” Alder seemed to realize that Raihan wasn’t just part of the crowd and lit up in a bright, broad grin. “Sorry! Didn’t mean to ignore you. I’m Alder, of Unova.” Alder offered him an easy grin and his handshake was firm and warm. “Oh, say, you must be Raihan, right? The Dragon-Type Gym leader of Hammerlocke? Kabu’s been singing your praises.”

“Uh?” Raihan looked over at Kabu who was firmly looking anywhere else and Alder continued speaking as though Raihan wasn’t gawping gracelessly like a stranded goldeen.

“Mind if we go get something to eat? It was a _long_ trip.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I know, I couldn't resist the harden joke. Yes I might be five. Shut up. 
> 
> This chapter is a little shorter than I'd want, juuuuuust over 2k words, but it was the only real place to break things for awhile. Next chapter is twice as long.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raihan gets to tag along with Alder and Kabu and spend the evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was my intention to post Saturday, but I decided I'd rather get destroyed by MR tempered Black Diablos in Monster Hunter instead. AGAIN. Poor choices.

Somehow Raihan getting to see Kabu’s home and join him for dinner wasn’t the most shocking part of the evening. 

Fucking _Alder_.

Unova was an ocean away, but even in Galar, Alder was famous; everyone had heard of the Champion who had held two separate reigns over a single League. Once on his own in his youth that lasted for a fairly impressive span years—difficult to do in the fast moving world of League play—and a second after a later Champion passed suddenly, and he’d been asked by the League to take the seat, a run that ended right after the Team Plasma fiasco that had be reported internationally.

Other than the intimidating legacy, Alder himself seemed to be a fairly down-to-earth sort of person. He laughed easily, and made light of everything, and seemed to be just an unassuming man other than the fact that it was _fucking Alder_.

He and Kabu made casual conversation as they walked—somehow Raihan was stuck with the luggage, and he suspected it was penance for crashing the evening—and the dragon-tamer looked around with bald curiosity when they arrived at Kabu’s home. 

He lived in a small brick building on the outskirts of Motostoke, where the streets were long and there was some distance and privacy between lots. It looked like it had once been a storage building that Kabu had converted, and there were few windows on the two-story affair, and some kind of ivy ran up the outside rampantly. Inside it had clearly been renovated, and there were stone floors covered in decorative rugs from distant regions. Kabu took his shoes off in the entry as he walked in, Alder following suit easily with his sandals, and Raihan struggling and hopping out of his trainers. 

He set the luggage down near the stairs when no direction was forthcoming, and spotted a small kitchen with smooth granite countertops and plenty of gleaming stainless steel cookware off down a hall. 

The living room was small and cozy with a soft, well-used couch and a few chairs, and there was—unsurprisingly—a huge hearth and fireplace nearly three meters across. A small fire burned inside, and Raihan spotted a few small—likely newly hatched—sizzlipede roving over the logs and between the coals, probably destined to take part in his Gym Mission next season. The outer wall had been almost totally knocked out and a huge three-section window stood in its place letting in the last vestiges of daylight, the sun setting directly behind the fair-sized yard he could see stretch outward. 

The whole space was ringed in an iron fence that was overgrown and more like a hedge, but the inner wall was clipped back and kept neat. In fact the whole yard was perfectly manicured and kept up, Kabu had styled it after a Hoenn rock garden, with a small, raked sand bed decorated with stones carved to look like Unovan zen-mode Darmanitan, a stretch of grass in the center with a small water feature and a large, towering acer tree, and at the far side was a beautifully paved stone patio battling area, brick set to mimic the paint of the pitch. 

Raihan blinked, thinking at first there was someone out there at its center but realized after a second of squinting that it was a Pokémon. It was humanoid and tall, almost as tall as Raihan and definitely taller than Kabu, with gold and red plumage, standing on one long leg with the other bent in the air, its clawed hands together and eyes closed, as if it were meditating. Its face was bright red and its beak looked sharp and wicked. There were horns on its head, but one of them looked broken, shattered somehow, and there were strange scars spiraling over its leathery arms. 

Had it not almost certainly been a fire Pokémon, Raihan would’ve almost said they looked like burn scars. 

He’d never seen anything like it and whipped out his phone, cueing up the pokedex function. “Hey, what the hell is that thing?”

“That?” his shiny Rotom buzzed a bit, “Nothing in the Galar Dex, lemme broaden the search.”

“Start with Hoenn,” Raihan suggested on a hunch. 

Then, after a second, “Huh, good call, boss. That’s a Blaziken, dual-typing fire-fighting. The final life stage of one of the Hoenn Pokémon the League breeds to provide starting trainers. Flames spout from its wrists, enveloping its knuckles. Its punches scorch its foes.”

“Hoenn starter?” He murmured absently, eyes widening, “Whoa, is that Kabu’s—?”

“Raihan?”

He jumped, Rotom shooting back into his pocket, finding Kabu leaning out of the kitchen to look at him, eyes narrowed, slightly suspicious. “Dinner won’t take long. Are you even hungry or did you already eat at camp?”

“I could eat,” He said, shrugging. He found he meant it. It had been a long walk back to Motostoke, and he could almost _always_ eat.

It didn’t take long for Kabu to put a meal together, Alder gesticulating as he told some anecdote that had Kabu chuckling periodically. Local Motostoke food tended to be simple with foreign influences, as during the Industrial Period immigrant workers had filled the old factories here to bursting. The culinary legacy of that period remained as did the smokestacks and large brick infrastructure of the city, and while it wasn’t always Raihan’s favorite, the simplicity of it seemed to suit both Alder and Kabu just fine.

Raihan felt himself uncharacteristically quiet in the conversation that flowed mostly between Kabu and Alder while they ate at the small dining room table, and Raihan did his best not to make awed deerling eyes at the foreign former-Champ. He knew he had been caught when he noticed Kabu favoring him with odd glances out of the corner of his eye. 

What could he say though? He knew he could be a narcissistic jackass, but even he understood that two old friends were catching up. Besides, it was way more interesting just watching. It was like a whole other layer of Kabu had been peeled back for his perusal, and considering how private the older man was, it was a little like unwrapping a gift. He had his phone subtly snap pictures like it was going out of style. Some of them would be decent magnets for his social media, but some he was kinda hoping to keep for himself.

He’d love to have mementos of meeting a foreign champion, for instance.

And Kabu, smiling freely like that.

But there was still a bitter taste on the back of his tongue, seeing Kabu open so easily for someone else. Seeing him have effortless chemistry when Raihan had been working so hard to try and cultivate any kind of relationship with the older man. He wondered if there was something there between them, and chewed hard on the inside of his lip in quiet misery.

“So!” Alder said suddenly, after the dishes had been cleared, clapping his hands together, “I’d be a terrible guest if I didn’t bring you a little something.”

Kabu looked exasperated and a touch suspicious, “You know perfectly well I wouldn’t have expected anything. And you’ve never been the type.”

“Oh, ho?” Alder chuckled, “That’s a change.” He staged whispered to Raihan, “He always used to stand on ceremony like a damn pedestal. So, have you Galarians finally managed to shake some of his rigidity then? In the old days he—”

“Alder,” Kabu interrupted, making the Unovan laugh. 

“Oh sure,” Raihan said, mouth switching on, “He’s late all the time, he never tucks in his shirt, and shouts rude things at children, our Kabu.”

It made Alder laugh loudly, but the Fire-Type Gym leader gave Raihan a look of utter disbelief and betrayal, and were it not for the gentle knock of a loafer against one of his trainers Rainhan might’ve thought he’d actually offended.

“Say, where’d you put that little case I had?” Alder asked. “And, thanks for carrying all that, by the way.”

Raihan blinked and shrugged, “I’ll grab it.” He trotted out to the front room and grabbed the small box Alder was probably asking about—a small, silver, latch-locked piece of luggage, probably no bigger than lunchbox and strangely light. He looked out the window again, wondering if the Blaziken was still out in the yard, but it was well past sunset by this point and there weren’t any exterior lights on. If it was still there he certainly couldn’t tell. Shrugging, Raihan brought the case back into the kitchen where the other two men were waiting. 

Alder beamed at him and took it carefully, setting it down and pushing it over to Kabu. “Anyway,” the former champ continued, voice softening, “Even if I didn’t have to, I couldn’t think of giving this to anyone else.”

Kabu frowned, opening it up and finding it lined with foam to protect some carefully packed item, and sitting atop it was a thick sheaf of documents and papers. Raihan, ever grateful for his height, craned his neck to peak at them but couldn’t make out much other than the official Galarian League seal. Grumbling, Kabu pulled out a pair of reading glasses as he flipped through them. 

Ugh, Raihan loved those glasses. Economical and square. He had this fantasy where he pulled them off Kabu’s nose with his teeth.

Alder continued speaking while Kabu read, “Even with my name behind it, this took a hell of a lot of effort to push through, but all the licenses and permits should be in place. I don’t think you’ll have any trouble with the Galarian League Authority.”

Kabu glanced at him and kept reading—Raihan would admit he was only paying half mind to Alder because Kabu in glasses was always a better use of his attention—before starting suddenly, eyes going wide behind his spectacles. 

He stared at Alder in outright disbelief, “You didn’t.”

Alder scoffed, “Of course I did.”

Raihan looked between them and then Kabu was shuffling through the papers hurriedly, eyes flying back and forth over the text. 

He was smiling again, the Dragon-tamer realized; smiling brightly and broadly and utterly incandescent. 

Raihan had no idea what was in that box, but he’d get Kabu a hundred of them, a thousand, if he had half a chance of ever being on the receiving end of an expression so _wondrous_.

With hands that were shaking—legitimately shaking, he didn’t think he’d ever see Kabu loose his composure like this—the older man uncovered a single carefully packed Pokéball, the classic red and white gleaming brightly under the overhead lighting. 

He lifted it out, cradling it in his hands, “Alder,” He tried again, voice hoarse.

“Say hello,” The Unovan suggested gently, his smile soft.

Needing no more prompting Kabu tapped the single button on the clasp of the ball, which snapped open smartly, its inhabitant sparking out in a flash of light onto the dining room table. 

Raihan didn’t recognize the, quite frankly, _huge_ ball of fluff that materialized—it was a bug-type, that was clear from its segmented body, some kind of worm that reminded him a little bit of a Snom—but it was large enough that it would take two arms to lift. Its face was dark and it had sky-blue eyes. A mane of white fluffy down covered its head, and there were five red, slightly-whorled horns ringing its head like a crown or a sun.

“What _is_ it?” Raihan couldn’t quite hold the question in. It wasn’t anything native to the Galar region, he was positive of that.

“This,” Kabu said softly, extending bare fingers for the Bug Pokémon to inspect, “Is a Larvesta. A fire-bug dual type in its first instar. It’s an incredibly rare Pokémon from the Unova region, and it’s been one I’ve dreamed of partnering for a _lifetime_.” He looked up where Alder was watching with a smile, “And it’s Alder’s specialty.”

Alder shrugged, “I don’t know if I’d say it’s my specialty, but it’s certainly the species I’m most familiar with. This little lady here was Sol’s last offspring. I’d kept the egg for years unhatched. Never had the heart, until recently.”

“Her last?” Kabu breathed, “Alder, no, I can’t possibly—”

“You can,” The Unovan insisted. “She needs to go to a trainer who’s going to raise her with dedication and passion.” He offered his own hand to the Larvesta and she rubbed her downy head against the offered limb with clear familiarity. “Besides, I still have Perihelion, and he’s more than enough of a handful. It’ll be awhile before I’m ready to help a giant bug raise another brood.”

Kabu tentatively stroked his hands through the silky down, face open and raw in a way that Raihan never wanted to forget. 

He didn’t even want to think about how much work it must’ve taken to get permits for the foreign Pokémon to be traded in Galar’s borders. Ever since Magikarp had been mistakenly introduced into the local ecosystem, they’d exploded in number, and decimated populations of native water Pokémon, like arrokuda, which in turn had all but crashed the Cramorant population. Galar had passed a number of sweeping environmental reform laws in response.

Any foreign Pokémon that were coming into the region had to be thoroughly documented and issued individual permits for the length of their stay. If they were coming into Galar permanently by trade, then the Rotomi system would run periodic checks on the new owner’s Box System to make sure it was still registered to them and hadn’t been traded under the table, and it would be five years before the Pokémon would be considered legal for trading. It would never be permitted into daycare or anywhere that Pokémon could group freely for risk of it breeding, and it would be disqualified from all Official Galarian League matches.

“Have you ever seen one of these before?”

Raihan jolted a bit, realizing Kabu was speaking to him, “Can’t say I have.” He scooted near in his chair a bit, shamelessly seizing the chance to get a bit closer. “So another fire type, old man?” He yanked Rotom out to snap a careful picture. 

Kabu gave him a flat look, “Of course. Fire-types are my forte, after all. But I never thought I’d ever have the privilege of raising one, especially not after I settled down in Galar.”

“I’ve never even heard of these,” Raihan said, which wasn’t intensely surprising considering just how many species of Pokémon were out there. 

“Unova has some of the most diverse and powerful Bug Pokemon in the world,” Alder said proudly. “They’ve really changed what we think about the typing, from being something that matures early and lacks strength, to something that can be incredibly powerful in the right hands. In fact I realized into my career I had nearly specialized in them without actively trying. Escavalier, Accelgor, Leavanny, Scolipede, Crustle, Galvantula, Durant… all strong Bug Types in Unova. And this little lady’s evolution, of course.”

“Galar has some strong bug types too,” Raihan said, elbowing Kabu who rolled his eyes, a smile tugging at his mouth, “She’s huge for a first-form bug-type.” Raihan grinned as she made an odd, curious whirring sound at them. 

“Wait till you see what she’ll become,” Kabu said, pleased, as she began to inch up onto him. Arceus, she must weigh about four and a half stone and the Fire-Type leader didn’t even wince as she crawled up his arm. 

“Want to?” Alder asked. 

Raihan grinned, full of teeth, “Can we? Oh, hell yeah!”

“Language,” Kabu said, clearly distracted by the giant grub, and then blinked, tuning in, “Just don’t set the place on fire. It’s as flame-retardant as I can make it but there are limits.”

Alder laughed, pulling off one of the pokeballs around his neck, “Do my best.” He tossed it gently and Raihan blinked as what first seemed like _the sun_ materialized in the air. Then it beat six massive wings, buffeting them, and dropped onto the floor, its four down-covered legs extending from its ruff to bear its immense size—Arceus, it was nearly bigger than _Raihan_ —and its wings folding back carefully over its body, red and orange like fire and covered in shimmering iridescent yellow and black scales. 

“What the—”

Kabu shot him a dirty look.

“—heck is that?”

“Peri is a Volcarona, and Sol’s first offspring,” Alder said and the _immense_ bug trilled in reply, its wings fluttering faintly, and he reached to stroke the Pokemon’s mane. “It was thought to be something legendary it was so rare for so long, but recent research has proven that they’re just intensely powerful and, sadly, terribly endangered.”

Perihelion arched like a Liepard up into Alder’s caress and beat his wings twice to lift up and land on his trainer, making an unusual grinding chitter that almost sounded like a crackling fire. 

Alder bodily stumbled as his Pokémon alighted on him, wings folding back down and clinging to the back of his poncho with all four legs. “Ooph! God you’ve gotten fat. We’re gonna have to cut down on the sugar, big boy.”

Nervously, the Larvesta tightened and balled up in response to the larger Pokémon, a fuzzy white pinwheel with red horns almost like a solrock. Kabu shifted her in his hold a bit, stroking careful fingers along her body, murmuring softly to her, words Raihan couldn’t distinguish but Kabu’s faint Hoenn accent seemed sharper as he spoke. Slowly, the Larvesta unballed, her blue eyes peeking out. 

Raihan had seen Kabu like this only once before, slipping from the resolute trainer into a gentle caretaker. Right after the Fire-Type Leader had been knocked out of the Champion Cup like he always was, and was waiting in the locker room, his Centiscorch, Seraphina, out with her head across his lap. Kabu scratched keen fingers between her exoskeletal plates where the long Pokémon could actually feel it, murmuring quiet praise for her performance. 

Raihan imagined it sometimes himself on his bad days, after a tough loss, of laying his head in Kabu’s lap and feeling those gentle fingers in his hair and hearing soft words of comfort and praise.

He knew he had it bad. 

“See?” Alder said, arms up around to stroking the practically-purring Volcarona on his back, “You’re a natural, you’ll have no problems handling a Pokémon as powerful as a she’ll become.”

Raihan spread his arms, gesticulating firmly, “Come _on_ , Kabu, you can’t keep faking when even Alder’s backing you.” He leaned in, grinning widely. 

Kabu sighed, “Raihan.”

“What’s this?” Alder asked, looking between them.

Raihan gestured wildly, “Kabu likes to pretend he’s on the strong end of average, but I _know better!_ ”

Alder laughed loudly, “Kabu? Average? Hardly. You know he beat me once in a singles match?”

Raihan whipped around and stared at the Fire-Type trainer, eyes wide. He jabbed at him with one single accusing finger. “You…”

“That was quite some time before you ever became the Champion,” Kabu tried to deflect, clearly self-conscious and embarrassed. “A lot has changed since then.”

The Dragon-tamer crossed his arms, scowling at Kabu, and slouching down in his seat. “I just knew you were having me on.”

Kabu looked vaguely pained, “It’s really not like that.” 

Turquoise eyes scanned over Alder, “What about you? Maybe you’ll have a decent battle with me?” His salty sourness about Kabu holding out on him aside, Raihan really did want to get Alder on the pitch and battle.

The Unovan chuckled, “Battling isn’t everything you know. But… well, I suppose there’s no harm in it. Only after I get to have my rematch with Kabu, though.”

Kabu looked cross, “I don’t recall agreeing to any such thing.”

Alder winked at him, “You will.”

Raihan slouched further down in his chair, stomach sick with bitter disappointment. 

\--

It wasn’t until he checked Rotom’s messages later that he realized how _late_ it had gotten. 

“Shit,” He said, blinking at the screen and standing. Kabu and Alder’s conversation had paused, looking at him. “Sorry, lads, If I’m gonna try and get back tonight I need to go _now_.”

Kabu frowned and looked at the clock on the wall, eyes widening a bit in surprise, “Goodness, where did the evening go? Raihan, wait, the train will take till _dawn_ to get back to Hammerlocke and the cab fare would be astronomical. And don’t even think about stumbling through the Wild Area after dark. Just stay here for tonight.”

Words Raihan had dreamed of hearing in a situation that was less than ideal. Arceus, but life was cruel sometimes. 

“I don’t know if it—”

“Don’t be stubborn,” Kabu stood, hefting up the Larvesta who was already snoozing in his arms. “I should probably be heading towards bed myself. Alder, the guestroom is made up for you. Upstairs on the left.”

Alder yawned hugely and nodded, Perihelion was long recalled to his Pokéball, “Sounds good. I’ll head up while you get this sorted.” He stood and stretched, ambling out towards the stairs. 

“Kabu,” Raihan tried again, “Seriously, it’s not a big deal.”

Kabu frowned at him sharply and he shut up. “Don’t be ridiculous, it doesn’t suit you. Not this time. You can take my bed, and I’ll sleep on the couch. It’s only right, you being my guest.”

Raihan gulped, imagining Kabu’s _bed_. Being able to stretch out and luxuriate where the older man actually slept, smelling him in the sheets and on the pillow with every breath he took. Surrounded by him. 

He did the hardest thing he may have ever done. “What? No way, I’ll take the couch. Your back can’t take it.” He did not want to have to explain to Kabu why there was cum all over his sheets. Because that is the only way _that_ was going to end. 

Kabu gave him a cross look, probably for the stubbornness or the back talk. “I don’t—”

“I kinda wanted to watch the sizzlipedes in your fireplace,” He fibbed. “I’ve never seen them so small, and it looked nice and warm in the living room.”

It did the trick at least, and Kabu looked mollified and a little touched. “Oh. Well, alright then, if you want to. They’re destined for the Gym mission next season, but I still like to give them nicknames and personal attention. I haven’t been able to think of anything yet, but perhaps you will?”

Raihan grinned, warm in an entirely different way that Kabu would consider letting him nickname one of his Pokémon. “Maybe call one of ‘em ‘Dragon’,” He teased, “Seems solid.”

Kabu, who’d been heading for a narrow closet under the stairs, paused and rolled his eyes heavenward, exasperated, but the corners of his mouth twitched in amusement. Score. “That’s a terrible name.” He pulled a pillow and a few blankets out of the closet. 

“Why is it terrible?” Raihan needled a bit, laughing when Kabu threw the pillow in his face. 

"It'd be like naming one of your dragons 'Bug'."

“Oh, it's not that bad. Come on, old man. They're fire types at least, and old Galarian legend talks about fire-breathing dragon-types.”

“Because the only ‘dragon’ in Galarian legend is Charizard, who’s been officially classified as a Fire-Type, _not_ a Dragon type. He gave Raihan a look that was all smug superiority and Raihan really, really wanted to kiss it off his face. “And certainly not _sizzlipedes_.”

“Ha! Well one of the Mega ‘Zards is, isn’t it? Mega evolution has been outlawed in this region since I was little but—Hey, what’s wrong?”

Raihan realized all at once Kabu had gone pale, his hands tight where they fisted in the blankets he’d gathered. 

“Kabu?” He asked softly. “You okay?”

“Fine,” Kabu said entirely too sharply and then cleared his throat. “Fine, just fine. Here,” He thrust the blankets into Raihan’s hands abruptly, not meeting his eyes. “I’m… just more tired than I thought. I’m going to bed.”

“Wait, Kabu,” Raihan tried to pull him back, getting that he’d somehow totally fucked up.

“Good night,” Kabu said, rolling over him, and heading upstairs without looking back. 

Raihan stood in the living room, feeling like somehow he’d stepped on a stealth rock, and very frustrated indeed.

\--

He took off his hoodie, his shoes, and let his hair out of its usual tails for the night, but didn’t actually manage to sleep much. He lay on the surprisingly comfortable sofa, staring at the ceiling and at the continuously burning fire-place for long hours. The sizzlipedes had run out of wood sometime in the night and chattered at him until he’d staggered up and put a few more logs on the fire for them. At least he could make someone happy. 

He wondered if maybe he’d been better off just staying at the campsite with the others and leaving Kabu alone instead of just barging into his day like he had. 

But even feeling miserable, he couldn’t help but be glad he’d come, that he’d gotten to steal these little illicit glimpses of the older man’s life at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While I'm about as far from one of the people screeching like monkeys about Dexit as you can get, thinking about what sort of things might cause such a ban to happen and be acknowledged in-universe was one of the first things that sort of made this whole thing take root in my brain. Probably pretty obvious some of the other things I'm gonna be playing with too. 
> 
> Also, a note about Alder. It's not confirmed in official lore that he was the Champion twice, its just the only fucking thing I can figure that makes any kind of sense. We know the Unova League asked him to step in and take the position, and If they just needed a strong trainer then why not promote one of the Elite Four? And if that's against the rules, why pick the wanderer who's more or less given up battling? Only reason I can think of, is that only someone who has earned the title of Champion can serve as Champion. So they needed Alder to come back.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kabu asks a favor of Raihan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize there was such a gap between chapters. I have another fic in a different fandom I'm posting that took longer than expected to be ready to post, and it's waaaaay easier on my anxiety if I just post everything at once. So this ended up delayed with that. 
> 
> I'm actually pretty fond of this chapter, and a new challenger appears.

Raihan drifted off a few hours before dawn and slept fitfully with snatches of dreams he didn’t remember, and was woken suddenly and unceremoniously when a giant grub crawled on his chest and he couldn’t breathe.

He struggled, flailing, and thrashed into a sitting position, the Larvesta rolling into a twenty-four kilogram ball into his lap. “Holy shit, you can’t do that to a man,” He panted, heart galloping with adrenaline in his chest, pushing loose hair out of his face. “What are you doing out, anyway? No way Kabu didn’t put a baby like you away for the night.” He pet her gently, reveling in how soft she was.

There was a quiet chattering down over the edge of the sofa and he looked to find Kabu’s Centiscorch curving around the coffee table, gently batting around a pokéball, and Raihan would bet the Hammerlocke Gym that it was the Larvesta’s ball. “Ahhh, so that’s how you got out. Does Kabu know you’re causing trouble, Seraphina?”

She rumbled and seemed to decide she was jealous of the attention the new Pokémon was receiving and scuttled up to drape herself across Raihan’s chest too. 

“Ooph, ladies, please,” He said, laughing quietly, and dug his fingers in between her plating to scratch like he’d seen Kabu do. She almost seemed to purr under the attention, and he lay back down, content to pet and lavish attention on the two Pokémon. The Centiscorch’s deadly heating glands weren’t ignited, thankfully, but were still wonderfully warm, like an electric blanket. The Larvesta slowly unballed, watching him with wide, blue eyes, and he kept his strokes against her down slow and gentle and soothing, remembering all the work it had taken to get his Trapinch to trust and stop nipping his fingers. 

“See? “He hummed, “Plenty of attention for the both of you. No need to be such jealous beasts.”

There was a small sound like the click of a rotom phone’s camera, and Raihan tilted his head, trying to find the source, wondering if his was goofing off again, and blinked when he saw Kabu standing by the stairs—dressed this morning in his compression shirt under a an unbranded polo shirt and his usual athletic shorts—watching him with a strange expression. 

“Uh,” He started a bit, “I swear I didn’t break them out, they woke me up.”

“I wouldn’t have assumed you had. Seraphina is a notorious escape artist, and often breaks others out in her boredom. I should’ve expected she’d be curious about the new Pokémon. Or that she might bother you.”

“It’s not a bother,” Raihan said honestly, “Really.”

“Still,” Kabu said, frowning, “They really ought to be _better behaved than that, Seraphina_.”

She lifted her head drowsily from Raihan’s chest and chattered insolently at her trainer and laid back down. Raihan laughed into his hand at Kabu’s expression of incredulity followed quickly by a sigh of resignation. 

“On the pitch my every command is an imperative, but in my own home it’s barely a suggestion, it seems.”

“What I’ve learned to accept,” Raihan said, “Is that training strong Pokémon doesn’t necessarily only mean strong in battle. Usually they have strong wills to match.”

Kabu barked a laugh, “I suppose I can’t argue with that.” He looked crossly at Seraphina, “Get back here. Challenge season is over but you don’t get to laze about all day.” She huffed, smoke issuing from her mouth and slithered off toward her trainer, dragging every single one of her many feet. Kabu tapped the button on her ultra ball and she disappeared in a flash, contained again. 

“I’m surprised, you know,” Raihan teased, still gently stroking the Larvesta. “I’d have expected you to be out the door at five am running a full circuit of the region, or heading to the gym to bench press a Coalossal or something.”

Kabu snorted, “Usually I out to jog at 6 or so, but with two guests here I didn’t want to risk waking anyone.” He sighed at his ultra ball and tucked it onto his belt. “For all that it mattered. Anyway, Alder and I will be busy today, so I’ll probably get plenty of exercise regardless.”

There was just _no way_ that meant what it sounded like, and Raihan’s eyebrows crawled up his face even as bitter, biting jealously tangled in his gut. “Oh? What are you getting up to then?”

“Alder’s never seen the Wild Area, so we’ll likely be hiking and traveling all day.”

See, that made far more sense, the dragon-tamer tried to tell himself, and nodded. “Hey, that sounds like fun. “ He didn’t for a moment expect he was invited along again. “But save your battles with each other for the pitch so I can watch, alright mate?”

Kabu shook his head, “I doubt there will be a match, but we’ll see.” He hesitated, “Actually, I wanted to ask you a favor.”

Raihan sat up straight, interested, “Sure, anything.” He meant that too.

Kabu nodded to the Larvesta still in his lap. “Weather reports call for overcast skies with a chance rain, which mean plenty of Water Pokémon roaming around. I want to have a full team for the Wild Area, just in case there’s trouble. But she traveled a long time in that pokéball from Unova, and I don’t want to just leave her in there for long periods this early in her development. I realize of course this is far beneath your talents, Raihan, but would you consider watching her today?”

“Yes, absolutely,” He said firmly.

“I’ll be glad to—wait, you will?” Kabu blinked, clearly expecting to have to make a case for it. 

“Of course,” he continued idly stroking the Larvesta, “I mean, most trainers don’t make a whole career out of it like us unless they love raising Pokémon as much as they love battling.” He nodded to the fireplace. “I will eat my headband if those aren’t Sizzlipede’s you’ve captive bred yourself.”

Kabu’s expression was the one that seemed entirely devoted to Raihan these days, exasperated and amused. “Your diet will remain intact then. Oh, speaking of, you can find something to feed her in the refrigerator—all the fruits and vegetables I feed to Seraphina were grown in volcanic soil, it should be suitable for the Larvesta too.” 

“Hear that, little girl?” Raihan grinned down at the Larvesta, “Fresh veg, nice right?” He frowned a bit, something occurring to him, “Wait, aren’t Sizzlipede and Centiscorch carnivores?”

Kabu hummed the affirmative, giving him an approving look. “They are, but in the wild they’d ingest whatever it was that their prey had eaten first as well, mostly plant matter. I’m not about to gutload Caterpie for them, they can just eat a mixed diet.”

Raihan made a face, nodding. He hadn’t the heart to feed live, either.

“Fortunately, Larvesta and their evolution are not so troublesome.” Kabu smiled and moved to kneel next to them, Raihan gulping very quietly as _thoughts_ rampaged through his mind. “I’d prefer to be the one spending time with her, but hopefully a day won’t matter. You might be able to tame dragons, but with bug-type Pokémon imprinting can be very important since they grow fast. Larvesta mature so slowly though—slower than even some of your dragon-types. It shouldn’t be as necessary in her development.”

“Hey, don’t worry, Kabu,” Raihan’s grin was entirely teeth, “I’ll still think you’re a good parent.”

“Delightful,” Kabu agreed flatly and stood. “She should also get some fresh air. If I’m going to have a high-grade Poké-sitter then I’d better take advantage.”

“Yeah, har har,” Raihan agreed sarcastically. “But sure. We can take a walk around Motostoke.”

“You could just take her out into the yard,” Kabu pointed out.

“What kind of high-grade Poké-sitter would I be if I just took her into the yard?” Raihan asked archly, grinning as he earned a chuckle from the older man. “Nah, we can head out into town a bit. I know how important socialization is. Ah, can I get back in here?”

Kabu nodded and pulled a key out of his pocket, “Here. This’ll get you through the front door.”

Raihan wet his lips as he took it. Holy shit, the key to Kabu’s _house_. “Won’t you need it?”

“It was actually one I was going to give to Alder so he could come and go as he wanted, but I think he’s left already.”

The dragon-tamer blinked, “He left? But I didn’t see him leave.”

Kabu sighed, “I swear that man’s half feral. I think he went through the window because he’s never going to truly age past sixteen.”

Raihan fidgeted a bit, “He’s… very different from you. Not the kind of person I’d imagine you’d get along with.”

Kabu tilted his head, considering and made a soft sound, “Mm, I suppose that’s true. But we’re similar in fundamental ways. Close in age, of the same profession, and we share an insatiable love of Pokémon.”

Raihan frowned, he had two out of three, that wasn’t bad, right? “Yeah, I guess that’s true. I’d have just thought on paper he’d drive ya crazy.”

Kabu chuckled, “Oh believe me, he does. Those are not mutually exclusive.”

“Really?”

“I put up with you, don’t I?”

Raihan sputtered and realized that Kabu was _teasing him_. He could _feel_ his face heating up. “Oh!” He mimed a hand over his heart as if injured, “You wound me, old man.”

Kabu snorted, “You’ll live. I should go see if I can find Alder before he does something foolish. You’ll be fine with her?”

“Yeah, we’ll make a day of it,” Raihan said, conflicted, proud he was trusted like this and disappointed he wouldn’t get to see more of Kabu. _Come on,_ he berated himself, _you’ve got no claim to his time and you really ought to be grateful for what you’ve had already. Don’t go showing off that dragon greed._

“You have my number in case of emergency?”

Raihan rolled his eyes, “Yes, _mum_.”

Kabu snorted, “Fine. Thank you again. And be good.”

“Oh, I’ll make sure she’s good,” The dragon-tamer promised.

Kabu paused as he stepped out the door to call back, “I was talking to you!”

\--

It was really kind of weird to be at Kabu’s home while the man himself wasn’t here. Make no mistake, he still loved the feeling of trust he’d been given, but he didn’t really know where anything was and he was fairly concerned he’d break something. The Larvesta was a quiet little charge though, and after most of his career raising temperamental, snappy dragons, a timid worm was basically a vacation. 

He did take her out into the yard, though he was still intending to go into town. With dragon-types it was important to start socializing and acclimating them immediately, and he had no idea if Bug-types needed a period of adjustment, but he was a career trainer and knew the signs of stress in most Pokémon. If it was the wrong call he’d just take her back to Kabu’s. 

She seemed to enjoying being in the sun though, horns lighting faintly in response to the warm, bright day, and Raihan, for one brief moment, wondered if he’d have to put out any literal fires. But she didn’t attack and all fire-types loved a bright, sunny day. 

The Larvesta also ate _tons_. She was a big grub, but he was a little worried he was going to have to explain to Kabu how the fridge was emptied into his new Pokémon. He knew bug-types were typically bottomless pits upon which one dumped calories into until they evolved, but she was on another level entirely. 

He also really wished Kabu had nicknamed her before he took off. He’d been reduced to calling her all manner of pet names. 

“Sweetheart, don’t chew on the carpet.”

“Don’t fall in the water, little girl.”

“Luv, you’re not gonna fit under that chair.”

He watched, sighing as the Larvesta chomped happily through a full head of lettuce. Opera was somewhere up in the branches of the Acer tree, her wings faintly making that tell-tale singing sound in the breeze. She had enjoyed playing with the Torch Pokémon, but grew quickly bored as the Larvesta was distracted eating _again_. 

“Man, little girl, we really are gonna have to go out into town. I have got to feed you something else or you’re gonna eat my—well, I dunno what to call him, but you’re gonna eat your trainer out of house and home. Sound good?”

She blinked her blue eyes and crunched on the lettuce, a leaf slowly disappearing into her mouth.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” He stood and dusted off his shorts, called Opera back to her ball, and hefted the Larvesta up bodily, grunting with the effort, because _seriously_. Fortunately she chattered in alarm but didn’t try and burn him—Alder certainly didn’t raise bad Pokémon, it seemed. 

He was definitely regretting that he’d gotten kind of lax about working out as he settled her in his arms. She blinked those big eyes at him and her little legs wiggled in the air. 

“I have no idea how some people think Bug-Types are gross,” Raihan confided. “You’re so cute it’s almost physically painful. I just wish you weren’t so damn heavy. Kabu might be built like a brick shithouse, but I might need to toss you in a stroller.”

\--

He did not, in fact, end up pushing her around like a baby, but did take her down into one of the cafés and bought her two human-and-Pokémon-friendly pastries to assuage that endless stomach, and some more vegetables that he thought might stand up to Kabu’s rigorous standards, and had them delivered to his house. Hopefully enough to get her through the day till he and Alder returned and then they could figure it out themselves. 

After that they were both tired for very different reasons, so Raihan hauled her up to the overlook on the way to the train station to sit in the sun. She clung to his back, her head tucked under the toothed hood of his sweatshirt and snoozed, the dragon-tamer sitting so his back was in the light for her. It wasn’t comfortable, like wearing a very heavy backpack, but it was nice to give his arms a break.

He’d pulled out a third pastry he’d saved for himself and had no sooner taken a bite than the Larvesta tried to wriggle around and get at it, trilling at him plaintively. 

He laughed, shifting to keep it away, “No, hey now. This one’s mine, you ate the other two. Fair’s fair.” 

She chittered unhappily and tried again, Raihan struggling with her weight as she crawled around. 

“Excuse me.” 

Raihan blinked and looked over to see a sharply dressed young man standing nearby, a duffle on the ground next to him. He had black hair that was long enough to fall past his ears, one errant lock sweeping up and over, a starched white shirt and red necktie and pressed blue pants. 

“Yeah?” Raihan replied, expecting a lucky tourist to want a selfie with the Hammerlocke Gym Leader. 

The newcomer offered a faint smile, and spoke with a Unovan accent, “I’m looking for Alder, and I know he arrived in this city last night. Can you tell me where he is?”

Raihan blinked slowly, a whole lot of everything not making sense, “Now why the hell do you think I know where—?”

“Because there’s a Larvesta eating your pastry,” The newcomer said calmly.

Raihan swore and yanked it away, “Damn it, I thought we had an understanding.” He glanced toward the young man, frowning a bit, “So, what, are you just… a fan of his or something to recognize his signature Pokémon?” This was said with a fair amount of skepticism. Fans were the lifeblood of the Galar Gym circuit, but every single Leader had dealt with overeager or invasive fan issues. They were a double edged sword in a lot of ways. He might have frustrated conflicted feelings about Alder, but he wasn’t going to sell the guy out to a weirdo either.

“Mm,” The newcomer gave a placid smile again, “Something like that. I’m here to see him.”

Raihan shrugged, “Well I can’t help you. Alder’s out on a date with Kabu in the Wild Area. No idea when he’ll be back.” There, that should at least wash his hands of the dilemma. 

“Oh, is that right?” He favored Raihan with a raised eyebrow and then turned, “Come on then, let’s go find him.”

He blinked after the stranger, feeling like something must’ve happened that he’d missed. “Uh, what?”

The black-haired man glanced back, “You’re a Galarian local, right? You can help me.”

Raihan realized, very suddenly, that this man had no idea who he was. And while some of that shock was pure affronted narcissism, he was also, genuinely, kind of a big deal. This was someone who’d gotten fresh off the train, and Galar definitely had a wide-range of regional ethnicities, but maybe he wasn’t just from one of the other cities. That accent… 

“Okay,” he murmured very quietly to himself, “I’ll bite.” Then, louder, “Well, wait up then!” He stood, the Larvesta shuffling to return to her position clinging to his back, which at least made it easier to walk than lugging her down the street. “So, who the hell are you, anyway?”

“Cheren,” Said the newcomer. “You?”

He was right then, zero clue from this guy. “Raihan,” He didn’t elaborate, wondering how this’d play out. His rotom phone buzzed in his pocket, a particular alert he knew meant it had something to tell him, rather than that he’d received a message, but he ignored it. “So, your accent; Unova?”

“Mhm,” Cheren didn’t see particularly intent on expanding. 

Rotom buzzed again, but Raihan was distracted by the six pokéballs on Cheren’s belt, each with an amount of wear that spoke of frequent battling, constantly throwing the contained Pokémon out and calling them back in. Possibly another career trainer. Was he someone looking to challenge Alder?

The next time rotom outright shocked him and the dragon-tamer ignored the phone out of spite.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trainers playing with one another's pokemon is actually just a giant weak spot of mine. I have no idea how you're supposed to deal with the Larvesta though, that thing weighs like 60 pounds. Good luck Raihan.

**Author's Note:**

> Raihan's pokemon are all nicknamed big bold nouns, Leon's are all food, everyone's nicknamed along some dumb theme. I get why nicknames are never mentioned in the games, it'd get really confusing really fast, but there's no way people actually wouldn't nickname their fucking pets. I am also aware that the rotom phones don't talk like the Dex did, but I want them to, so they do. Ha. 
> 
> Yo, add me. God can pry Max Raid Battles out of my cold, dead hands. Playing primarily Shield Version, 260 hours deep at time of posting, someone send help. 
> 
> SW-5554-6610-8224
> 
> Bangin' down the walls/We start a riot/Stand up to 'em all/Go on, try us/Fever for the fight/Hearts beat defiant/We live like kings/Walk like giants


End file.
